Disney World, Disneyland, Go Informed Podcast, Theme Park Touring

Disney World Compared to Disneyland – Go Informed Podcast Episode 050

April 15, 2020
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Episode 50: Disney World vs. Disneyland

On this episode of the Go Informed Podcast I’m joined by my friend The Disney Hack. We compare Disney World and Disneyland, including where to stay, how long to go, and what makes each destination unique.

These are the show notes for Go Informed Podcast episode 50. Click the Play button to hear my discussion with the Disney Hack for lots more detail about this topic.

Disney World vs Disneyland Geographically

In our discussion, location came up time and again. The location of Disney World vs Disneyland is a key factor in the entire Disney vacation experience.

Disneyland is located in the middle of urban Southern California, while Disney World is literally its own city in central Florida.

The weather can play a big factor in touring at Disney World, especially during the summer months, while Disneyland’s Southern California weather is pretty consistently perfect.

Magic Kingdom train station at Disney World

The Size of Disney World Compared to Disneyland

Disney World is MUCH bigger than Disneyland.

Disneyland has two theme parks, literally across the street from each other, plus three Disney hotels and a shopping/entertainment district called downtown Disney. The area covered by the entire Disneyland resort is less than one square mile.

Disney World covers about 43 square miles, which is roughly the size of the city of San Francisco! At Disney World you’ll find four theme parks, 2 water parks, about 30 Disney-owned hotels, golf courses, and a huge shopping/entertainment district called Disney Springs.

Disney World has multiple forms of free resort transportation. At Disney World you can get around on a bus, monorail, boat, or skyliner gondola. Disneyland’s unique form of transportation is the monorail, which takes guests right into the park.

Here is a quick infographic about the size of Disney World.

A pirate themed room at Caribbean Beach Resort at Disney World

Staying at Disneyland compared to Disney World

There are three Disney-owned hotels at Disneyland: the Disneyland hotel, Disney’s Paradise Pier, and the Grand Californian. At Disney World there are about thirty Disney-owned hotels.

Because there are only three Disney hotels at Disneyland, rooms at each of these hotels come at a premium. However, dozens of chain hotels and motels are located within about a mile of the Disneyland entrance, many literally across the street. Crossing the street to stay in a less expensive hotel takes guests back to the real world but can save money.

At Disney World, the vast number of hotels means that guests can stay in a Disney property at pretty much any price point. Disney World’s value hotels compare in price to a Best Western. Moderate hotels compare to a Marriott, and Deluxe hotels compare to Ritz-Carlton. (All of Disneyland’s hotels will fall in the “Deluxe” range of pricing). And by staying on-site at Disney World, guests stay in the “Disney Bubble” – avoiding the return to the real world even after leaving a theme park.

The Parks and Attractions at Disneyland Compared to Disney World

At Disneyland, the theme parks are Disneyland and California Adventure.

At Disney World, the theme parks are Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

There are actually a lot of attractions that appear at both Disneyland and Disney World. Even though these are the “same” rides, there are differences between them.

Disneyland Pirates of the Caribbean queue — Because of the weather, queues are mostly outside at Disneyland, and mostly inside at Disney World.

Disneyland Pirates of the Caribbean — Pirates of the Caribbean at Disneyland

In fact, many of the duplicate attractions are better in Disneyland. The Disneyland rides are generally the original iterations, and they are often longer in duration with more details.

A very unique floral arrangement in Disneyland's Cars Land — A very unique floral arrangement in Disneyland’s Cars Land

Unique attractions at Disneyland include the entire Cars Land, Avengers Campus, and many Fantasyland rides that date back to the time of Walt Disney.

Almost every attraction at Epcot is unique to Disney World

At Disney World you’ll find one-of-a-kind experiences like Flight of Passage and Kilimanjaro Safaris at Animal Kingdom, as well as Epcot’s World Showcase.

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is at both Disneyland and Disney World. The attractions in this land are virtually the same on either coast.

Disney’s California Adventure is home to the Marvel Avenger’s Campus. Find out more about Marvel in the USA theme parks on Go Informed Podcast episode 68.

Dining At Disneyland Compared to Disney World

In my opinion, the dining options at Disneyland do not compare to dining at Disney World.

From standard theme park fare to world-class dining, Disney World has hundreds of dining options.

My one must-do dining experience at Disneyland is the Blue Bayou restaurant. Blue Bayou is located inside the Pirates of the Caribbean ride (just one of several reasons I think the Pirates ride is better at Disneyland). The Disney Hack recommends getting the Fantasmic dining package when you make your Blue Bayou reservation. This gives you reserved seating at Fantasmic and even a seat cushion while you watch the show.

Tea at the Grand Floridian Resort, Disney World

Disney World has themed restaurants throughout all the parks and in the resort hotels. Disney Springs is home to restaurants from some of the top chefs in the world. And Epcot’s World Showcase features dining experiences that take you from Paris to Marrakesh to Tokyo and beyond. If dining is one of your favorite vacation activities, Disney World is your playground.

If dining is one of your favorite vacation activities, Disney World is your playground.Click To Tweet

FastPass at Disneyland is Different Than at Disney World

At Disney World, FastPasses are electronic, and you can reserve your FastPasses up to 60 days before your trip. The reservations are free with your park ticket, and require a lot of strategy. You can get my tips for FastPasses at Disney World on episode 12 of the Go Informed Podcast.

How Long to Stay at Disney World vs Disneyland

Even though Disney World is so much bigger than Disneyland, there are actually about the same number of total attractions in Disneyland’s two parks compared to the total between Disney World’s four parks. This means you can see a lot more at Disneyland in a shorter length of time.

Because of its smaller size, the Disneyland resort is a better choice for a long-weekend vacation. A good length of time to see all of Disneyland is 3-4 days.

Disney World has a practically endless amount of attractions and diversions. I recommend at least five days, but ten days would be awesome.

How Annual Passholders Can Affect Your Day at Disneyland Compared to Disney World

Because of its location in such a major urban area, Disneyland has a ton of annual passholders. These regulars will often go to the parks just for a few hours or even only for a bite to eat. As a tourist at Disneyland, especially on the weekend, you may find yourself overwhelmed by the crowds of local passholders.

Disney World is the opposite. The majority of park guests at Disney World are tourists, many traveling from far away. Most Disney World visitors are staying in an on-site or nearby Orlando hotel and are visiting the parks for the first time. Weekends can be busier but in general every day is about the same as any other at Disney World.

One More Reason to Go to Disney World: Proximity to Diagon Alley

Diagon Alley at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter Orlando

As you probably know, I’m a huge fan of the Universal Orlando theme parks. Especially the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Universal is just about a 30 minute drive from Disney World, and is easy to add to your Disney World vacation.

Here’s my audio tour of Universal Orlando’s Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Here are my tips for how to add Universal to your Disney World trip.

Here’s my comparison of Universal Orlando vs Universal Hollywood.

Thank You Disney Hack!

It was great sharing this episode with Joey from The Disney Hack. You can find his show on your favorite podcast app and at TheDisneyHack.com.

You can also catch our weekly Facebook Live Hack Chats right here.

And, if you liked this episode, don’t miss our very amusing discussion about One-Star TripAdvisor reviews on episode 54.

You can also catch Joey and I chatting about Marvel in the Disney and Universal theme parks on Go Informed Podcast episode 68.

Social Media Links for The Disney Hack:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheDisneyHack/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedisneyhack/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedisneyhack

Episode 31 of the Disney Hack Podcast is my discussion with Joey all about the Covid-19-related theme park closures. Click here for the show notes and to hear our conversation.